broken timing belt=valve damage?

My 1987 Accord LX (with carburetor) had a timing belt failure. Is it
possible to know if my valves and pistons are trashed without
disassembling the engine? I didn't hear any loud catastrophic sounding
noises when it failed. It just stopped running.

 

When you get the new timing belt back on, try to rotate the engine. Engine
damage is usually obvious at that point. If it rotates okay, do a cylinder
compression test. If that's okay, all is well.

 

--------------------------------

Take off the valve cover, set the pistons at half-mast, Turn the cam(s)
over by hand in order to check the valve clearances. If any are
super-excessive on any valves, they are the bent ones.

You don't want to bay a timing belt you may not need (disposable
engine). :-(

'Curly'

 

You're fine! The 86-89 Accord engines were one of the last(if not THE last)
which WERE NOT interference type.

How do I know? Because the timing belt on my '88 Accord LX sedan snapped in
'01 while cruising along at 60 mph. I immediately thought the engine was
toast but I learned later that I got extremely lucky. I ordered the parts and
it's been running fine for the past 5+ years.

If you don't believe me then ask the guys at Matta Motors. They've been Honda
specialists for the past 25 years and really know their stuff.

www.mattamotors.com

 

| Is it
| possible to know if my valves and pistons are trashed without
| disassembling the engine?

insert an endoscope into s-plugs' holes & see on tv / mntr

 

gates.com says the only non-interference engines from 1973
to the present are the 3.2L Honda Passports.

 

This is the answer I was really hoping for. Thanks to everybody who
replied.

I was cruising on the highway at about 65 when it broke. The battery
light didn't turn on at first because the transmission was still turning
the engine for about 10 seconds until I put it in neutral. Looks like I
don't really have a big problem after all.

 

Which are actually Isuzu engines...

 

Robert,

Mine did the same thing. No sound...the engine just stopped.

I was always under the impression that the 86-89 Accords, like all Hondas,
had interference type engines so my heart sank when I pulled off the upper
timing belt cover and learned
that it had snapped.

The next day I logged onto the Matta Motors site to discover that I was wrong.
I wanted further confirmation so I called them and talked to Jim or Dan(the
Matta brothers). They assured me that the engine was fine so I just needed to
slap on a new belt and tensioner pulley.

They were right! I was going around 60 mph and the engine didn't suffer any
damage. That was almost six years ago...the car still runs like a champ.

 

So, a new tensioner is recommended as well? I took the timing belt
cover off, detached the engine mount, and removed the power steering
belt. I got into it just enough to realize that I wasn't feeling
motivated to work on a car yesterday afternoon. I'm planning to leap
into action Saturday morning.

It looks like I need a new camshaft seal. Is this the kind of seal
where you remove the shaft and put in two halves while it's out, or is
it the kind where you take off the gear and press a round seal into
place from the outside? Also, where is the timing mark on the gear?
All I see is one spoke that says "UP".

Do you have any other words of wisdom for me about this project?

 

Robert,

I've never had to replace any of my seals(at least not the cam or crank seals)
so I can't help you there.

I DO recommend replacing the tensioner pulley as they usually start to wear
at the end of the timing belt's life. You might as do it while you have
everything apart. It's usually not absolutely necessary but it's cheap
insurance.

I should warn you about holding the crankcase pulley stationary. On the 86-89
Accords it's kinda a PITA. You may need to buy a strap wrench or you could
drill two holes in the crankcase pulley and then connect a long rod to it
with some nuts an bolts.

Good Luck. Let us know how it turns out.